Washing machine drain leaking

[cookie_365]

The drain from my washing machine is leaking - only very slightly though.

From the machine the waste pipe goes slightly upwards then downwards.

At about the level of the highest part of the drum it goes into another pipe. It's not a sealed connection, it's basically a triangle that drops into the pipe. When the machine drains a small amount of water gets forced back through this join. There's black gunk at the join which I guess is soap scum.

The second pipe then carries down until it joins another pipe carrying on in the same direction, level with about the middle point of the drum. There's some black gunk at this connection, which is a bit like how you connect vacuum cleaner hoses - the top pipe kind of unscrews out. If I unscrew the top part the lower bit starts to drip and it looks like it's full of water - I haven't tried totally unscrewing the top bit out.

The lower pipe carries down to a u bend, with the bottom of the u about the same level as the bottom of the drum on the machine.

It then goes up to about the level of the middle of the drum and the second connector, then turns near horizontally, rising a few degrees, until it meets the sink waste outlet pipe (after the sink's own u bend) and then heads out of the building.

The leak is only slight - an old tea towel wrapped around it is enough to soak up all the water - but I want to make sure I fix it before it gets worse

The sink drains fine.

It might actually have been leaking all the time without me noticing it - I don't keep anything under the sink - so I don't know if it's a block or even if the layout of the pipes is all wrong

As it's only a small leak is there any reason why I can't just wrap both connectors with waterproof tape - or will that cause crud to go back into the machine? There must be a reason why the connections aren't completely sealed, though maybe it was just convenient for the plumber

Any suggestions?

Thanks

[progers]

It's a bit hard to follow your description, any chance of a picture?

[SnoopZ]

Yes pictures would be better, but in my case i have plastic drain pipes and every 6 months i have to unscrew them all and clean the black gunk out or i get water forced out everywhere, so maybe you just need to clean yours.

[cookie_365]

Thanks all

This is the problem bit, I think.

The bit where the grey pipe meets the white pipe is where the water gets forced out during the drain. I've also noticed it spurts about half an espresso cups worth at the very start.

The connector below just at the level of the nasty white mdf seems to be full of water.

Does that help?



WashingMachine.jpg

[Jon T]

I'd bet on the u-bend/trap being gunked up.

Also, from your photo, it looks like the the pipe connected to the u-bend/trap(the white stuff, not the washer drain pipe) is running up hill which is probably not helping the situation.

[Taf]

Get rid of that white pipe and connect the washing machine drain pipe to the U bend of the sink with a trap like this

[DaiNasty]

Originally Posted by Jon T

I'd bet on the u-bend/trap being gunked up.

Agreed. And the gravity drop on the whole assembly isn't helping. That pipe should be upright (and a lot taller too)

See if you can get something like a brick or a piece of wood under the bottom of the U-bend to support it and get the slope on the outflow pipe running the right way.

[SnoopZ]

Yes as the others have said, it is gunked up, a clean shouls sort your problem out.

[cookie_365]

Thanks all - will have a go - I'm guessing it's limescale.

Taf, that image you posted - I can see where the machine hose goes, and I'm guessing the black connector goes to the what-should-be-horizontal pipe - what connects up to the other white connector?

And what's it called?

Cheers for everyone's help so far, just watching a fresh run with a bit of vinegar to see what happens

[Taf]

Originally Posted by cookie_365

Thanks all - will have a go
Taf, that image you posted - I can see where the machine hose goes, and I'm guessing the black connector goes to the what-should-be-horizontal pipe - what connects up to the other white connector?

And what's it called?

It's an "appliance nozzle sink trap" and replaces the U bend under the sink, just a couple of minutes to swap them over. The drain pipe from the washing machine fits on and is held tight by a jubilee clip.

http://www.wickes.co.uk/Appliance-No...ap/invt/431942

---------- Post added at 18:02 ---------- Previous post was at 17:59 ----------

[DaiNasty]

Originally Posted by cookie_365

I'm guessing it's limescale.

Essentially that's what causes the problem. Anyplace the water can sit such as in the u-bend it will deposit limescale gunk. Last time I cleaned out the outflow from my machines the pipe was about a quarter full of the stuff.

[Jon T]

Originally Posted by Taf

It's an "appliance nozzle sink trap" and replaces the U bend under the sink, just a couple of minutes to swap them over. The drain pipe from the washing machine fits on and is held tight by a jubilee clip.

Planning on doing this myself at some point in the next month or two. I also want to fit a new sink unit at the same time. The tap feeds are solid copper pipe at the moment, i'm thinking of cutting them below the sink and replacing them with flexible feeds. Are there any problems that I could have doing this?

[martyh]

Originally Posted by cookie_365

Thanks all

This is the problem bit, I think.

The bit where the grey pipe meets the white pipe is where the water gets forced out during the drain. I've also noticed it spurts about half an espresso cups worth at the very start.

The connector below just at the level of the nasty white mdf seems to be full of water.

Does that help?



Attachment 21865

Your problem as Dainasty has said is the white pipe is not tall enough it needs to be higher that the drum on the washing machine to stop back flow .The fix is simple you can buy a bit of pipe unscrew the short bit thats there and replace with as long a piece that will fit under the work bench .There is no need to replace the trap under the sink ,unless it is practical to do so also your drain hose from the washer might not be long enough so you would have to buy a extension hose which adds potential for a leak

[Taf]

Flexible pipes are AFAIK not "best practice", but that's probably because they are easy and don't need much plumbing knowledge.

It is "best practice" however to empty the S/P/U bends of gunk from time-to-time. You'd be surprised what gets stuck in there!

One note about the Appliance nozzle sunk traps is that you may have to extend the drain pipe from the washing machine, and some installers won't touch them if the pipes are extended! I don't know why, but I've heard of it happening several times of late.

[martyh]

Originally Posted by Jon T

Planning on doing this myself at some point in the next month or two. I also want to fit a new sink unit at the same time. The tap feeds are solid copper pipe at the moment, i'm thinking of cutting them below the sink and replacing them with flexible feeds. Are there any problems that I could have doing this?

do you mean these

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=fle...w=1259&bih=599

if so then yes they are fine they are designed for leaving the main supply pipe work and just changing sink tops were the taps might be in a different position to the original which the pipe work was installed for .Saved me a load of plumbing hassle over the years and available in longer lengths should you need them